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Date: Sept. 14, 2026
Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov
Charlotte, NC – The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of North Carolina today announced criminal prosecutions as part of a nationwide enforcement action led by the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division, the Small Business Administration (SBA), and the SBA Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG) targeting fraud in the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
From June 12 to Sept. 1, federal prosecutors across the country facilitated fraud enforcement actions spanning over 160 criminal defendants, including approximately 80 newly charged defendants, reaching approximately $245 million dollars in intended loss to American taxpayers.
“The point of pandemic relief funds was to keep businesses afloat and people employed during the COVID pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson. “As you can see from this extraordinary coordination among law enforcement agencies to identify and hold these fraudsters accountable, we will stop at nothing to protect taxpayer dollars.”
“Pandemic loan relief was meant to keep American small businesses alive during government lockdowns—not line the pockets of fraudsters,” said Attorney General Todd Blanche. “The defendants charged during our summer surge allegedly fabricated businesses, submitted false payroll and revenue claims, stole identities, and concealed foreign ties on their applications— but they will now be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
“This summer surge shows what is possible when dedicated public servants across the country work together with a single purpose,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. “Our mission is clear: protect taxpayer funds, safeguard the integrity of federal relief programs, and deliver justice to those who exploited them. We will remain steadfast every day—standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our partners—to identify fraud, pursue those responsible, and restore confidence in the programs meant to help American small businesses thrive.”
“Today’s announcement represents the largest-ever action against perpetrators of SBA fraud, with 870,000 suspended borrowers tied to $39 billion in suspected fraudulent PPP and COVID EIDL activity. In partnership with Vice President Vance and the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, we’re putting fraudsters on notice: the federal government will no longer turn a blind eye to those who stole from taxpayers and exploited programs designed to sustain small businesses during the pandemic,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. “With demand letters going out to suspected fraudsters, we’re also sending a clear message that they must repay their debts or face Treasury collections and possible federal law enforcement. Under this Administration, the free ride is over. We are restoring accountability, recovering taxpayer dollars, and protecting SBA programs for the legitimate small businesses they were created to serve.”
“Operation No Doze brings a focused and coordinated approach to pursuing fraud in SBA’s pandemic relief programs,” said SBA Inspector General William Kirk. “By concentrating our investigative resources and working closely with SBA and our law enforcement partners, we are strengthening our ability to identify fraud, recover taxpayer funds, and hold accountable those who exploited programs created to help small businesses in a time of extraordinary need. This initiative makes clear that the passage of time does not diminish our commitment to accountability.”
In Western North Carolina, U.S. Attorney Ferguson announced that the following defendants have pleaded guilty or have been sentenced for PPP and other pandemic-related fraud:
U.S. vs. Robert Dailey – Dailey of Charlotte and a former resident of Fort Mill, South Carolina, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering for defrauding the SBA and SBA-approved lenders of more than $4.6 million in PPP and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) funds. From 2020 to 2023, Dailey submitted materially false and fraudulent loan applications on behalf of himself and other businesses. Dailey owned and controlled RemeDy Financial Services, LLC (RemeDy Financial), as well as Roma Capital LLC (Roma Capital). Roma Capital served as an agent and consultant to assist clients in obtaining relief funds. As part of the scheme, Dailey obtained almost $2 million in fraudulently obtained relief funds by submitting PPP and EIDL loan applications and supporting documentation for RemeDy Financial and other businesses that he had a personal association with that contained materially false statements and misrepresentations. In addition, Dailey received loan preparation fees for submitting fraudulent PPP loan and EIDL applications and supporting documents on behalf of other clients. This resulted in at least $2.7 million in fraudulently obtained relief funds to be disbursed to Dailey’s clients.
U.S. v. Glynn Hubbard, Jr. – Hubbard, Jr. of Charlotte was sentenced to 30 months in prison and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to wire fraud and money laundering for obtaining more than $1.2 million in fraudulent COVID-19 relief funds for himself and his customers. From March to August 2020, Hubbard, Jr. submitted fraudulent PPP and EIDL loan applications to the SBA and SBA-approved lenders, seeking to obtain relief funds for himself and for his customers’ businesses. To obtain the relief funds, Hubbard, Jr. falsified the loan applications and supporting documentation by including false financial information, fake employment data, and fraudulent tax returns. Of the $1.2 million in relief funds disbursed as a result of the scheme, Hubbard, Jr. received more than $570,000 for himself, and over $660,000 was disbursed to his customers. Hubbard, Jr. promoted the fraudulent scheme through personal referrals and in social media posts where he advertised that he was a PPP loan/EIDL consultant. Hubbard, Jr. received improper loan preparer fees for his consulting services totaling more than $150,000.
U.S. vs. Marquise Highsmith and Tatiana Vazquez – A couple formerly living in Midland, N.C., has been sentenced to prison for stealing millions of dollars in COVID-19 relief funds by defrauding the SBA and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) after pleading guilty to wire fraud conspiracy affecting a financial institution and conspiracy to defraud the government. Marquise Highsmith was sentenced to 27 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $2,329,497.94 in restitution. Tatiana Vazquez was ordered to serve 18 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release and to pay $1,379,425.28 in restitution. From May 2020 to January 2022, Highsmith and Vazquez submitted multiple fraudulent applications to financial institutions and to the SBA to obtain PPP and EIDL loans for several purported businesses that they or other co-conspirators controlled. These applications contained fraudulent information related to the businesses’ tax filings, number of employees, and other fabricated financial information. As a result, Highsmith and Vazquez personally received hundreds of thousands of dollars in relief funds. After receiving the funds, the defendants filed loan forgiveness applications that also contained misrepresentations, and as a result some of the loans were subsequently forgiven. In addition, from July 2022 to February 2023, Highsmith and Vazquez engaged in a separate but related conspiracy to fraudulently obtain COVID-19 relief funds through other federal programs administered by the IRS, including the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) program and the Sick Leave and Family Leave Credit (SFLC) program. The defendants and their coconspirators defrauded the IRS by preparing and filing fraudulent forms that falsely make millions of dollars in tax credits and other corresponding tax refunds. As a result, the defendants and their coconspirators improperly received more than $1 million in relief funds. (Ryan/Bozin)
U.S. vs. Richard Metz – Metz of Charlotte was ordered to pay $520,832 in restitution and sentenced to 14 months of probation with 12 months to be served in home detention, after pleading guilty to wire fraud for fraudulently obtaining $520,832 in pandemic relief funds. According to court records, in August 2021, Metz submitted a PPP loan application that contained materially false and fraudulent representations regarding his purported business revenues and other information. Metz obtained $20,832 in PPP funds as a result of the fraudulent application. In addition, in September 2020, Metz and another individual submitted a fraudulent EIDL loan application for another company that contained fraudulent information. Based on false financial information and fraudulent loan application, Metz obtained $500,000 in EIDL funds.
In making the announcement, U.S. Attorney Ferguson credited the agencies that investigated the cases, including the SBA, SBA-OIG, IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Caryn Finley, William Bozin, Daniel Ryan, and Graham Billings.
On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division (“Fraud Division”). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department’s work to combat fraud supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.
IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 16 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.